University Of Saskatchewan

The Canadian Centre on substance abuse (FCTC) and the University of Saskatchewan formalized an opportunity to enhance their respective roles and effectiveness by signing a memorandum of understanding on September 25, 2007, Protocol which has been renewed for another three years on September 22, 2010.

Context

It is widely recognized that substance abuse and addictions have a negative impact on health and on the social and economic well-being of Canadians, and that effective partnerships between educational and non-governmental institutions can contribute to the development of research, policies and programs of advanced to reduce the harms associated with alcohol and other drugs.

The FCTC and the University of Saskatchewan have the opportunity to enhance their respective roles and effectiveness through a cooperation agreement that brings together the unique strengths of each organization. Under its provincial action plan against substance abuse, the Saskatchewan Government has created a Research Chair in substance abuse at the University of Saskatchewan to help increase knowledge about alcohol and drug problems and how best to treat them. The agreement between the FCTC and the University of Saskatchewan sets a link between academic excellence and the addictions field.

Highlights to date

Current and ongoing collaborations

The University of Saskatchewan sits on the Ethics Committee of the issues of substance 2013 of the FCTC conference.

The University of Saskatchewan is a pilot site for the community network Canadian of epidemiology of drug use (CCENDU) piloted by the FCTC.

The FCTC provides advice to officials of an initiative, called what’s Your Cap? Led by students from the University of Saskatchewan on the timing of alcohol on college campuses.

In June 2010, a collaboration between the FCTC, the University of Saskatchewan, University of Calgary, the University of Regina and other community partners has received research funding from the Alberta Research Centre on children, the family and the community for a two year project on the role of equine therapy in the treatment of the abuse of volatile solvents among Aboriginal youth. In 2011, a report, A Healing Space: The Experiences of First Nations and Inuit Youth with Equine - Assisted Learning, were made public. In conjunction with this project, Randy Duncan received in 2011 to 2013 a postdoctoral fellowship from the Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation to create a culturally appropriate tool to evaluate the effectiveness of equine therapy among first nation’s youth.

The Centre of excellence in BC. for women's health, the FCTC, the University of Saskatchewan and the University of the South of the Australia looking to better understand the role of sex, gender and diversity in substance use and dependence by offering a virtual community of practitioners to the national framework for action to reduce the harms associated with alcohol and other drugs and substances in the Canada; the document apply on sex, gender and diversity analysis to the national framework for action to reduce the harms associated with alcohol and other drugs and substances in the Canada has also produced under this project. The ability to create a second virtual community is envisaged.

The FCTC sits on the Advisory Committee of the STREAM team (Saskatchewan Team for Research and Evaluation of Addictions Treatment and Mental Health Services), which is run by the University of Saskatchewan. Clear links are forged between the manual of the FCTC on systemic approach and an evaluation manual created by the STREAM team, which will be ready in April 2013.

The University of Saskatchewan is a member of several advisory groups driven by the FCTC:

National Advisory Group on the prevention of drug abuse among young people

Advisory Committee on the national strategy on alcohol

Steering Committee of the national strategy on treatment

Advisory Group on national guidelines for consumption of alcohol at low risk (Chair)

Advisory Committee and project on brief intervention and orientation team

A project of community-based Aboriginal women consuming drugs that were in conflict with the law and the role of the identity of the self healing research is funded by the Canada health research institutes and led by the University of Saskatchewan in partnership with the FCTC and national indigenous Foundation (NNAPF) Addictions Partnership. This project examines the role of identity and prejudices in gueriso paths